Astrid: Signed up for suicide!

Build and Guide Astrid: Signed up for suicide!

Cheat Sheet
Skill Build

Pick up Spin Slash first. Build up Fearless charge for a while early in the match, then stick to keeping things even. Power up Dire Blow whenever you can.

Items

Rankbreaker, Sonic Boots, Mantle of Ra, Mail of Pain, Omni Arms, Medallion of Troy

Arcana

Low-tier arcana users should focus on a mix of Stength, Agiliy, Life, and Stab. Higher tiers should balance Attack Power, Armor Pierce, Cooldown Speed, Attack Speed and Max HP. This will vary between tiers.

Talents

Execute, Sprint, Purify

Introduction
Astrid shot to the top of my preferred character list from a single play, and there’s a good chance she’ll do the same for you if you’re at all into harsh melee attackers who live life on the edge. Astrid’s relentless assaults only get more potent as the match goes on. She doesn’t self-identify as a tank, but she certainly benefits from living like one – albeit with a slightly different ulterior motive.

You see, as a Warrior-class hero, Astrid swings a massive 2-handed blade to chop up her enemies, but does so like an anime character; fleet of foot and acts as if it’s weightless. She charges in aiming to do as much damage as possible early on, take the hits that come with her aggressive playstyle and deliver the finishing blow to everyone in an arc by becoming invincible for a short period of time and swinging for a strike that only becomes more powerful the closer she is to death’s door.

Like I said; she lives life on the edge. Succeeding as Astrid means being fearless, observant, and patient. A good choice for those who think ranged champions should initiate every fight ever. Her skills are overwhelming at first, but the weave into each other just fine. Don’t be put off by her walls of text.

Skill Build
The first of Astrid’s many text-heavy abilities, Bladed Guardian is a passive ability activated whenever she falls below 80% total health. Granting a flat 450HP shield for 4 seconds, it even deals magic damage to those around her as it ticks over. The shield adds a decent chunk to her health-pool early on, but patters out later in the game. Thankfully, it fires back up every 24 seconds if the HP criteria is met, and can have its cooldown shortened by every strike Astrid lands; by 3 seconds on a champion hit or 1.5 seconds when striking a minion or monster. Guess which stat Astrid loves.

Spin Slash is, thankfully, far more straight forward. This fast AOE strike around Astrid grants a 20% increase to her attack speed if it comes into contact with an enemy hero, with another 3% added on for every additional hero hit for 4 seconds. Given it has flat 5 second cooldown, a single item and some wise arcana choices will quickly turn this into an always-on buff in fights.

Fearless Charge is a strange on as its official skill description doesn’t accuratly portray what it does. Upon use, Astrid charges a short distance forward, dealing damage, slowing and decreasing the armor any enemy heroes in her way by 30%. Her next auto-attack after this will be a guaranteed critical hit and even shaves 1 second off the 10-second recast time of Fearless Charge. What it doesn’t mention is that this auto-attack is a lunge, meaning Astrid can charge closer to the her enemy first and lunge at them from a distance with the follow-up strike. It’s a double movement skill and a pretty great gap-closer when you’re chasing one or two enemies down an open lane.

Lastly comes Dire Blow – an Ultimate ability very deserving of the name. Upon activation, Astrid becomes immune to all damage for 2 seconds as she readies a massive cleave. Striking in the last quarter of her invinciblity period, the swing deals a guaranteed 500 damage (1000 at skill level 3) plus her current psyical damage stat. On top of that, its power is increased by 1% for every 2% of HP she’s lost, allowing for an added 49% power increase in optimal conditions. Those hit with the brutal attack are slowed for 1.5 seconds – or stunned if they had more HP than Astrid at the time. She can even move slightly as it casts (but can’t pivot), giving a 1.5 second grace period for her to catch the most amount of targets in her swing.

Because you never really know who you’re going to face off against in Arena of Valor early on, focusing your efforts on Fearless Charge feels like the best course of action – especially when you’re playing aggressively, as per this guide.

You’ll want to grab Spin Slash first of all, but your focus should absolutely be Fearless Charge after that. Spin Slash doesn’t get a faster recast time through leveling up, while Fearless Charge does. The latter even gains a similar jump in power with each stage. It doesn’t have the same raw power as Spin Slash, but it will mean more frequent assaults, and more chances to land a critical blow. What helps you close in on your enemy also helps you get away.

Take Fearless Charge up to around level 3 before you start to balance it out with Spin Slash – then keep things even from there. Pick and level up Dire Blow whenever you can.


Talents
Astrid can absolutely function as a Jungler, but this guide will continue to treat her as a powerful lane Warrior with the following three Talent choices;

Execute is by far my personal preference here. Short-sighted players will launch themselves into certain doom by looking to unload it on a low-health target who’s close to a tower, but anyone else will put it to good use. Astrid spends practically all of her time in combat with her face pressed against the enemy. Fearless Charge is a great way to lock on and strike down fleeing targets, and you’ll be practically spoiled for choice when it comes to executing any one target after a well-aimed Dire Blow on the enemy team. Her cooldowns and gap-closing capabilities might render it overkill on softer targets, but hitting a tank with this can take the places of 3, 4, or even 5 additional hits. If not many more.

Sprint is a viable option for any hero, and doesn’t offer Astrid much more than what it offers anyone else. What is does offer is an added burst of speed that can help Astrid close in on targets just out of range of the lunge from Fearless Charge. It’ll stay up for longer than a single charge, too, meaning you’ll be able to catch up to a target again if they’re still standing after the last attempt. Rinse and repeat to chase a lone hero out of your side of the field. Other obvious benefits are handy escape plans and rapid engagements. Wait in the brush for your moment, pop sprint to get within Fearless Charge range and let loose.

Then there’s Purify. A far more situational Talent to have on hand, it isn’t one completely without purpose. Astrid’s main damage burst comes from a well-timed tap of Dire Blow after taking substansial damage, and nothing can ruin this plan faster than a stun during that clutch moment. Popping this just as you’re ready to activate the skill will last just long enough to have your swing go off. You’ll have a half-second window where you can be stunned before losing your damage immunity, but any death caused by that will be down to sheer dumb luck.

Equipment
For Astrid, every action taken against her results in a slight shift in strategy. To enable each of these, she looks for a number of stat choices in her shopping basket. Purpose-built to compliment her abilities, there’s Attack Power, Max HP, Armor, Magic Defence, Cooldown Speed and Armor Pierce to name just a few. She’s an all-round gal – not a one-trick pony.

Rankbreaker is her first full build. Increasing her movement speed when out of combat isn’t absolutely necessary, but it’s a nice bonus when used to open fire with Fearless Charge. Attack Power, Cooldown Speed and a tasty 100 armor pierce buff that scales with her level is a great choice on a character that will happily go head-to-head with a dedicated tank. Her treads of choice are the Sonic Boots, offering +110 armor and a flat 15% reduction in damage taken from auto-attacks. She might want to edge closer to death for more power, but sustaining her passive shield is just as important.

Making good use of her staying power, Mantle of Ra increased her armor by a whopping 330 points while awarding a somewhat minor – but noticeable – +80 attack power. The selling point here is that Astrid will begin to burn nearby targets every second that’s to the mantle’s passive ability. Her passive shield does the same when active, allowing for a double-tick of damage without her moving a muscle. Mail of Pain adds crucial survivability elements and passively dishes out 15% of phsyical damage taken back to the attack as Magic Damage – another handy choice in the fight against tanks.

Finishing things off, we deviate slightly from the current #1 item build by swapping out Ancestral Glory with Omni Arms. The idea here is to shy away from the idea of death, and swap the lifeline for a stack of useful stat increased. Extra attack damage, attack speed, cooldown speed and half the health of Ancestral Glory bump up our raw killing power. Adamant on sticking around, the item’s passive double-damage auto-attack every 2 seconds after using an ability should kick in numerous times in a fight. The aim here is to wipe out the enemy before they have a chance to kill us off. Life steal aids in that for sure, but it isn’t the best thing to have with a percentage-based Ultimate. We’ll make do.

Medallion of Troy follows a similar idea to Mantle of Ra. Bumping up her lacklustre magic defence by an even great 360 stat value and adding a massive +1000 HP, 10% cooldown reduction builds upon our early Rankbreaker. Going hand-in-hand with her passive once more, it’s own passive slaps a magic damage shield on Astrid every 18 seconds – that’s a cooldown similar to her own when you account for reductions through attacking.

Arcana
Unlike mages, Astrid, a melee hero, isn’t as straight-forward when it comes to Arcana. Never settling on just one strategy, she dips into a lavish arcana spread. Even for Tier-1 users it isn’t just a 1/1/1 choice. Something like Strength and Agility in Red slots, Life in Blue and Stab in Green slots will do for the most part. If you’re hoping for a little extra defence, swapping out Armor Pierce for Armor and Magic Defense is a decision for the ages.

But what does that look like for Tier-2 Arcana users? Pummel and Batter are both very viable choices for the Red slots. Both offer the same Attack Damage stat, while one offers a boost to Max HP while the other focuses on Attack Speed. The easiest decision would be to go for a half-half spread. Blues are easier with Passion giving Attack Damage and Max HP in reversed positions. Greens make things confusing again by offering more offensive and defencive options in a single arcana. Mix and match Assault and Ravage to boost Attack Speed, Power, Cooldown Speed and Max HP.

Tier-3 Arcana, while on the expensive side, are somehow more simple. Onslaught is available to fit your Attack Power and Armor Pierce wishes. Blue Arcana like Guerrilla bolster both Attack Speed and Movement Speed, leaving Green coins like Valiance and Skewer to boost Cooldown, Attack Damage/Pierce and Max HP for a healthy spread of HP-fuelled killing power.

Early Game
While you may feel like a tank for the most part, you’re a Warrior at heart, so don’t think top lane is your birthrite. Take your place up there if you’re without a dedicated tank, but don’t be surprised to land in a 1v2 you can’t really win. As a melee hero, you’ll have a hard time when outnumbered and trying to farm creep, so rally for a teammate – preferably a healer – and focus your efforts on harassment.

Regardless of your lane pick, Fearless Charge will be your bible. Use this to poke your rival and follow up with Spin Slash to scoop up minion kills. This is a little problematic when you’re in a 1v1 situation with a ranged hero, but it solidifies. In that position, latch onto them with Fearless Charge if they’re close to the minion wave; otherwise, just charge for the minions and Spin Slash them down before backing up a bit. Farming really is key here. Before long, you’ll be able to rush to your rival, slow them down, and beat them half to death without much worry. Just be patient.

If you’re with an ally elsewhere, the aim will absolutely be to use Fearless Charge to harass the opposite team. Try to get Spin Slash to hit both an enemy player and a minion wave, but it’s ok to settle for slower creep kills. As long as Fearless Charge and the guaranteed crit hit their mark, it’s generally fine. Spin Slash is reusable enough to blow on creep.

Mid Game
It’s typically recommending you grab a kill or two before going in too hot with Astrid. She doesn’t start off insanely powerful, but it doesn’t take much to get to a point of trivial 1v1 victories if you reach level 4 and have at least a component of Rankbreaker already on hand. With a sizeable shield, decent attack power, gap-closing, short cooldowns and a mighty swing that can fend off death, there isn’t a whole lot to be afraid of at this stage; and earning it can be one of the more fulfilling moments in the game.

Farm as much creep as you can if your lane is an easy victory. If you’re adamant your lane buddy can hold the fort for a little while, head over to whichever lane might need your help. Hide in the brush and let your teammates know you’re there. Allow for the enemy champion to push ahead a little, edge forward, Fearless charge in their direction and use the ‘crit lunge’ to strike their softest character – like a mage or other ranged attacker. Hit back with Spin Slash and alternate between your main two skills to keep on the offensive. Use ‘execute’ to finish off a low-health target and back out of there. If things are getting dicey, pull out Dire Blow and aim for at least the most viable low-health target; but ideally aim for the lot. If you’ve used this at a crucial health point, use Fearless Charge to back out; otherwise, use it to finish off the last man standing if it seems plausible.

The last thing you want to do it start feeding someone else’s lane. Scout the situation as best you can, but keep to farming creep if your gut tells you it won’t end well. Coordination with your team is key as Astrid due to her desire to be on low health. Your team might flee at the sight of your anticipated demise, but tapping ‘Attack’ or ‘Retreat’ can quickly let them know of your goal.

If you have a shot at the tower, using Fearless Charge can scoop up your opponent’s medkit while giving you a guaranteed critical strike that can help make quick work of the tower. Both Red and Blue buffs can absolutely help Astrid stay on the offensive, but help any allied healer or mage take the Blue for the best results.

Late Game
With enough towers down, the massive brawls are sure to break out. You ideally want to be matched on gold with the opposite team’s ADC at this point, so opt to continue pushing lanes and grabbing jungle creatures as best you can if this isn’t the case.

Having Mail of Pain is a good indicator of your power at this point. As ever, your aim is to pressure the opponent with rapid attacks, in turn shortening the cooldown of your passive shield for maximum survivability. Once your health drops low enough, pop Dire Blow and shimmy your way to striking the most amount of enemy heroes as you can. If your team is still putting up a good fight, use Fearless Charge to zero in on low-HP enemies like carries, mages and support. You can put up with tanks fairly well, but they’re absolutely best saved for last; just like always. Use that same skill to retreat if you’re fighting a losing battle – but be sure to let your team know your intention beforehand. You don’t want them rushing in as you funnel out.

Everything will go far smoother with a dedicated tank and support in your line-up, but that’s rarely the case. Thankfully, Astrid still benefits greatly from taking a few blows on the chin, so being the centre of attention isn’t wholly bad.

Rush in with Fearless Charge to apply your armor pierce to as many targets as possible. Use the follow-up strike to zone in on a softer opponent you want to focus down, and time your Spin Slash to strike the team for maximum damage. Keep up the assault by tapping whichever comes up first, remembering to do your follow-up crit lunge on a soft target for the best results. Each successful use of any ability means your shield will fire back up more quickly, so use this is motivation to keep up the fight.

Just as you would have done before, ready Dire Hit the moment your health starts to drop considerable – usually around 30% or so to be safe. Using Reckless Charge once more before this can help you get into position to swing as the maximum number of target. Most won’t notice the charge-up and will continue attacking you, meaning you’ll hit plenty of foes for a massive amount of damage. Pay close attention to your shield cooldown as you fire this; if it’s about to fire back up after the strike and a few enemies are low, you’ll have a good chance of finishing them off with a few well-placed attacks. Execute is a great skill to have here.

Again, signal your allies to attack or retreat as necessary. You’ll be the one to read the majority of the fight here, so don’t be afraid to voice concerns. Reckless Charge can instigate the end of a rough encounter just as it can signal the start of one. You’ll need to constantly weigh up your options in combat.

Once it gets to pushing forward, stay on the front lines inside the enemy base to act as an intimation; otherwise, stay hidden and use Reckless Charge to surprise stray defenders around your team. Your survivability can be used to push out other lanes if need be.

FAQ/Tips
The guaranteed critical hit from an auto-attack after Reckless Charge can make quick work of towers

You can still slowly move during the wind-up time of Dire Blow – use this opportunity to line up more targets

Astrid’s passive shield kicks quicker with each ability or auto-attack she lands. Offence truly is the best defence.

Reckless Charge flings Astrid forward on use, and again when she’s within range to strike a target. The tooltip fails to mention this

You’re almost guaranteed to finish Dire Blow once activated. It’s never too late (unless you’re dead).

You can use Reckless Charge to avoid enemy AOEs in a flash

Matchups
The only challenges Astrid really faces in a 1v1 is against a copy of herself. At that point, things boil down to whoever’s shield started on the lower cooldown amongst other, more obvious, things. Arduin is another tricky one, but Execute will help.

Astrid performs best when against multiple targets and with a little backup. She can shrug off attacks more quickly by hitting more opponents, and can deal devastating damage to a team that groups up under the idea that they can simply overwhelm her. That being said, her end goal is usually the same; to deal enough damage so Dire Blow can end the battle. She’s designed to fight until the end, and you can mitigate her coup de grace by saving stuns until she’s within spitting distance of death. She can dash out of vital moves and lunge back in, so a 1v1 isn’t advised most of the time. In a team fight, however, it could be as simple as preying on her suicidal resolve.

Healers are, obviously, the best to pair up with Astrid. Anyone that can allow her to get low enough for Dire Blow and heal her up to carry on the fight is someone she’ll hold dear – Peura is a notable highlight, while Alice can work wonders with shields and a slowdown big enough to ensnare the whole team for a final swing